Key punch



April 19, 71938. L. M. KEEFE 2,114,447

KEY PUNCH Filed Feb. 28, 1935 5 SheetsSheet 1 (\z 0 N N x EWNINGSINVENTOR Zmrcozzv M. AEzns ATTORNEYS L. M. KEEFE April 19, 1938.

KEY PUNCH Filed Feb. 28, 1935 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR ZINcazAr/f KEEFEflmflmflw ATTORN EYS L. M. KEEFE April 19, 1938.

KEY PUNCH Filed Feb. 28, 19:35

5 Sheets-Sheet 3 K. NW

ATTORNEYS April 19, 1938. E 2,114,447

- KEY PUNCH Filed Feb. 28, 1935 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 ATTORNEYS L.M.KEEFEApril 19, 1938.

KEY PUNCH Filed Feb. 28. 1955 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 mww ms mm Patented Apr.19, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFECE 21 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in key punches and has for anobject the provision, in a key punch, of a record carriage which may bemanually set to position any horizontal row in the record in alinementwith the punches.

A further object of the invention is the provision, in a key punch, of asettable carriage and means for temporarily moving the carriage toanother setting.

Another object of the invention is the provision, in a key punch, of acarriage which may be set with any horizontal row in the record inalinement with the punches and an operative lever having a visualindicator associated therewith by means of which the carriage may bemoved to another position temporarily and adapted to automaticallyreturn to the original setting when the lever is released.

Still another object of the invention is the provision, in a key punch,of means for disabling the mechanism at a point between the keys and thepunches during the time the carriage is being moved from one setting toanother, the disabling means being rendered ineffective as the carriagecomes into registration in any desired setting. This makes it impossibleto punch a hole in the record in any other than the normal indexpositions.

Still a further object of the invention is the provision, in a keypunch, of a carriage which may be adjusted for difierent widths ofrecord cards and which is provided with a member engaging the top edgeof a record and tending to force the bottom of the record into intimatecontact with the carriage.

Another object of the invention is the provision, in a key punch, ofmeans between the keys and the punches for imparting motion from thekeys to the punches regardless of the relative 40 location of the keysand the punches.

Still another object of the invention is the provision, in a key punch,of manually operated means accessible from the outside of the machinefor returning to the normal position any 45 of the punches which maystick.

A further object of the invention is the provision, in a key punch, of asettable record carriage, a visual indicator operatively connectedthereto, means for temporarily setting the carriage for punching inanother field of either a higher or lower order than the original field,and spring means for returning the carriage to the original settingregardless of whether the temporary set was of a higher or lower order.

A still further object of the invention is the provision, in a keypunch, having a carriage adapted to be set in any one of a plurality offields and a visual indicator designating the fields, of an attachableor detachable visual indicator containing further designations in thevarious 5 fields.

Other objects of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in theart.

Referring to the drawings:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of the new and 10 improved key punch;

Figure 2 is a sectional drawing along the line 2-2, Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a top view parallel to the carriage and taken along the line33, Figure 2;

Figure 4 is a rear view, partly broken away, showing the arrangement ofthe parts of the new and improved key punch;

Figure 5 is an end view of a portion of the new and improved key punchshowing details of the 20 drum, the hand lever and. mechanismcontrolling the locking and unlocking of the carriage;

Figure 6 is an elevation partly in section of the drum shown in Figures3 and 5; and

Figure 7 is an elevation, partly in section, taken 25 along the line l-lof Figure 6 and showing the interrelation between the registration plateand the return dogs and springs.

Figure 8 is an enlarged view showing details of the key action.

A stepped member 20, together with end plates 2| and 22, form the mainframe of the machine. The stepped plate is provided to carry the keyswhich will presently be described.

'A plate 23 secured to the stepped plate 20 and the end plates 2| and 22is provided with a cut away portion 24 and forms a support for a plate25. The plate 25 is provided with an elongated depression 26.

A multiple die plate 21 is secured to the plate 49 25 and has aplurality of dies 28 communicating with the elongated depression 26whereby portions cut out from the records may be discharged.

A punch suporting member 29 is secured to the plate 23 in any suitablemanner; for example, by means of screws 30; at eachend thereof, thespacing apart of said screws being preferably wider than the widestrecord which the punch is capable of handling.

The supporting member 29 carries a shaft 3! which pivotally carries aplurality of punch actuating levers 32. The levers 32 are each providedwith a tongue 33 which engages a notch 34 in a I punch 35.

The punches 35 are supported in a block 36 which might be termed astripper.

When the levers 32 are moved about the pivot shaft 3| in acounterclockwise direction, as viewed in Figure 2, the tongues 33engaging notches 34 in the punches 35 propel the punches into the dies28.

A metallic block is secured to the supporting member 29 and carriesspring means for returning the levers 32 to normal. This block isprovided with a plurality of holes 38, one for each of the levers 32.Each hole carries a plunger 39, and spring 40. The upper end of eachhole is closed by means of a screw 4|. The pressure of each spring 40 isconveyed to its associated lever 32 by means of a plunger 39. Thetension on the plunger 39 may be adjusted by means of the screw 4|.

A transverse member 42 extends from the end plate 2| to the end plate22. A substantial portion of the member 42 is hollowed out to form areceptacle for the metallic block 43. This block is retained in positionby means of a plurality of set screws 44.

The block 43 is provided with a plurality of holes each containing aplunger 45, one plunger being provided for each lever 32. The lower endsof the holes in the block 43 have secured thereto conduits, one of whichis designated by the numeral 45. The plungers 45 each have securedthereto a positive driving flexible means. In the present embodimentthis flexible means is a close wound continuous spring 41.

The stepped plate 20 is provided with a plurality of keys, one of whichis designated by the numeral 48. Each key 48 is provided with a shank 49and a shouldered portion 59. A bushing secured into the plate 210secures the key in operative relation thereon. The shouldered end 5|] ofthe key has a cavity 52 formed therein, and a plunger 53, similar to theplunger 45, engages the cavity 52 and transmits motion from and to thekey.

The plungers 45 and 53 are provided with reduced end portions, notshown, which are threaded in a pitch matching the convolutions of thespring 41 so that they may be screwed into the ends of these springs.

The conduits, one of which is designated by the numeral 46, in additionto having one end secured to the block 43, have the other end secured tothe interior of the stepped plate 20 in the following manner:

The conduit 46 passes through a bushing 54, and terminates with theplunger 53 in cooperative relation to the shouldered portion 5|] of thekey. The conduit is retained in this position by the clamping action ofthe bushing 54 when the same is screwed into the plate 20.

Due to the fact that the close wound spring 41 is confined in theconduit 46, motion may be directly imparted from one point to anotherwithout any appreciable lost motion and through any angle. In view ofthis the positions of the keys 48 relative to the positions of the punchactuating levers 32 are immaterial and this form of construction hasadvantages over lever and gear linkages of the prior art in that themechanism is greatly simplified and the final form of the device is notlimited by the type of mechanism imparting motion from the keys to thepunches.

A bottom plate 55 is secured to the stepped plate 29 and to the endplates 2| and 22, thereby forming a closure for the bottom of the deviceand stiffening the structure.

The record carriage, generally designated by the numeral 55, consists ofa substantially rectangular plate 51 having a rectangular opening 58formed therein so that the carriage can be moved relative to the punchesand their associated mechanisms.

The plate 5'! has secured thereto on the rear surface thereof, a rack 59and a rack 69. A gear 6| meshes with teeth in the rack 59 and a gear 62meshes with teeth in the rack 58. These gears are carried on a shaft 63which is suitably journalled in the end plates 2| and 22 so that whenthe shaft 63 is rotated the motion is transmitted to the plate 5?through the gears and racks and thereby the carriage is moved up ordown.

The operation of this shaft and the carriage motions will be presentlydescribed.

The plate 5'! also has secured thereto on the rear face thereof,preferably adjacent to the racks 59 and 6D, metallic angles 54 and 55.These angles are provided with a series of preferably rectangularnotches 65. A slidable shaft 67 is supported by the end plates 2| and 22and has a faced portion milled 01f to form a rail 68 of substantiallyrectangular form adapted to engage any of the notches 56. The railportion 68 of the shaft 61 is provided with a notch adjacent to each ofthe angles 64 and 65. One of these notches is designated by the numeral59, see Figure 3.

The rail 68 retains the carriage in any setting (according to whichnotch 66 is engaged thereby) and the carriage can only be moved when thenotches 59 are in line with the notches 55. The method of actuating theslidable shaft 57 in connection with the moving of the carriage willpresently be described.

The carriage 56 is provided with lands 7!) and H for the records toalign precisely therewith and for guiding the records into the spacesbetween the die plate 27 and the stripper block 35. A stop plate 12 issecured on one side of the land and serves as an abutment for the end ofthe record to position its vertical columns in line with the punches. Astop plate F3 is positioned adjacent to one side of the land 'H. Thestop l3 has an angular foot M which is secured to the plate 51 by meansof a screw 15. The screw 75 passes through a slot 16 formed in the plate5! and the stop 13 may be set a greater or lesser distance from the stop72 (this movement being limited by the length of the slot 76) toaccommodate different widths of records.

The carriage 56 carries a plate Tl which has end portions 18 and i9embracing preferably rectangular shafts 89 and 8|. A rectangular sleeve82 is secured to the shaft 89 forming a shoulder for limiting the upwardmovement of the shaft. A similar sleeve 83 is secured to the shaft 8| inthe same manner and for the same purpose. The shafts 89 and 3! aresecured to a spring plate 84 in any suitable manner. For example, bymeans of screws 85, one of which is shown dotted in Figure 1. The rearend of the spring plate 84 is secured to the plate 'l'l so that when thecurved or front end of the spring plate 84 is raised the rectangularshafts 8i] and 9| are moved upwardly endwise until the portions 82 and83 come in contact with the end portions 78 and 19.

A suitable bottoming plate for the records, designated by the numeral85, is secured to the lower end of the plate 51. When a record isinserted into the carriage its bottom edge comes in contact with theplate 86, and its ends are positioned by the stop plates I2 and I3.

When a record is inserted in the carriage the spring plate 84 is raisedas above described and when releasedthe portions 82 and 93 contact withthe upper surface of the record, thereby insuring the registration ofthe bottom of the record with the surface of the plate 89.

The plate TI is provided with shouldered stud screws 81 and 88 whichproject through vertical slots 89 and 99 formed in the plate 51 so thatthe plate TI may be adjusted vertically for records of diiferentheights, nuts 9I and 92 being provided to secure the plate I! in anydesired setting.

The shaft 53, carrying the gears El and 62 above referred to, has asleeve 93 splined or keyed thereto. The sleeve 93 has secured thereto ahub 94. The hub 94 is provided with a keyway 95. The sleeve 93 has ashouldered and a threaded reduced portion 96. A nut 97! secures aportion of the hub 94 against said shouldered portion.

The hub 94 has formed integral therewith a drum generally designated bythe numeral 99. The drum 98 has a radial portion 99 which terminates inthe hub 94. It also has a cylindrical portion I99 which is parallel toand spaced apart from the sleeve 93. The cylindrical portion I99 hasformed integral therewith an outwardly extending radial section IOIwhich serves as a visual indicator as will presently be described.

An indexing plate I92 is pivoted on the sleeve 93 and is movably securedto the end plate 22 I by means of screws I93 and I94 extending throughslots I95 and IE6 respectively in the plate I92.

The indexing plate I92 is provided with a plurality of notches I! whichcorrespond to the horizontal rows of index points in the records andeach notch will cause the record to be positioned with one of itshorizontal rows in registration with the punches.

A plurality of holes I98 are formed in the index plate I92 each holebeing adjacent to one of the slots I91. The functions of these holeswill presently be described.

A spring plunger I99 is carried by a bracket IIB secured to the endplate 2!. The plunger I99 is provided with a tongue portion I I Iadapted to engage any of the notches I91 and thereby to block the indexplate I92 in any position, according to which notch is engaged. Thebracket I I0 is provided with a pointer II2, in line with the tongueIII, and adjacent to the radial portion ll of the drum. The pointer H2forms a portion of a visual indicator. The other portion of the visualindicator is formed on the outer surface of the radial portion I9! inthe manner shown in Figure 3. The lines indicate the various indexpositions of the horizontal rows in the records and the numbers on thelines designate those rows. For instance, when the pointer H2 is in linewith the line upon which the 2 is positioned it indicates that thehorizontal two row of the records is in line with the punches.

The sleeve 93 is provided with a portion having a larger diameter andhaving slanting sides, which forms a cam. This cam is generallydesignated by the numeral II3. This cam engages a device for disablingall of the keys so that no perforations may be made in the record unlessthe record is in accurate registration with the punches. This mechanismconsists of, referring to Figures 2 and 4, pivoted arms I I4 and H5carried on a shaft I I9 which is journalled in the end plates 2| and 22.A bar II! is secured to the upper ends of the pivoted arms H4 and HE. Aspring I'I5 has one end connected to the arm I I5 and the other endconnected to a pin I76 in the end plate 22, for holding this mechanismin the normal position shown in dotted lines.

-When the drum 98, together with the sleeve 93 and its cam I I3, aremoved to the right, as shown in Figure 6, which is to the left as shownin Figure 4, the cam II3 engages the pivot arm H5 and moves it slightlyin a clockwise direction as viewed in Figure 2, or outwardly as viewedin Figure 4, thereby positioning the bar III immediately above theextensions H8 forming an integral part of the levers 32. The drum andthe sleeve shaft together with the cam must be moved in the mannerdescribed before the carriage can be moved to another position. The camH3 continues to engage the pivot arm H5 until the carriage is set atanother accurate index position and a movement of the drum to its normalposition disengages the cam from the pivot arm H5 thereby allowing thebar ill to return to the position shown dotted in Figure 2 which is itsnormal position, after which the keys are again enabled to actuate thepunches.

The index plate I02 has secured thereto an overhanging extension II9which overhangs the flanged portion IIII of the drum. This overhangingextension II9 is provided with a registering pin I29 which engages ahole I2! formed in the flanged portion of the drum. The flanged portionof the drum also has a keyway formed therein which is adapted to beengaged by a key I23; It is preferable to make this key in the form of aroller. The open face of the drum is provided with a registration pin I24 which is adapted to register with any of the holes I93 as willpresently be described. The radial portion of the drum 98 has securedthereto an annular ring I25. This ring is of substantially largerdiameter than the cylindrical portion I99. The slidable shaft 61 extendsthrough the end plate 22 and carries at its outer end a lever I26. Thelever I26 has formed therein a slot I27 which straddles and rides thering I25 at all times so that any movement of the drum 98 lengthwisealong the shaft 63 will be imparted to the slidable shaft 9?. 5 I

A lever I28 is secured to the shaft BI and is provided with a hole whichis at all times in engagement with a guiding pin- I29 located in the endplate 22. This lever and pin arrangement prevents the shaft 61 fromrotating but permits it to slide freely as the position of the drum 98is changed.

The hub 94 has secured thereto a ring I39 provided with sockets I3I andI32. A lever I 33 has a portion thereof in the form of a ring I34 and anend portion. I35 the tip of which is made in the form of a ball I36. Thering portion I34 is provided with pivot screws I37, I38 which pivotallyengage the sockets I32 and I3I respectively. The ball I39 is positionedbetween sectors I39 and I49. These sectors are spaced apart by sleevesone of which is designated by the numeral MI and they are spaced apartfrom the end plate 22 by sleeves one of which is designated by thenumeral I42, the sleeves and sectors being secured to the end plate 22by means of bolts I43 and nuts I 14. The lever I33 is provided with asuitable handle I45.

When the operator engages the handle I45 and presses the same to theright as viewed in Figures 1, 3 and 6, the drum 98 together with thesleeve shaft 93 is moved to the right whereupon hub I56 journalling onthe sleeve shaft 93.

the cam H3 causes the key action to be disabled as above described. Bythis movement the registering pin I20 is disengaged from the hole I2I,the key I23 is disengaged from the keyway I22 and as the drum is movedfurther to the right the registration pin I24 engages a hole I08. At thesame time the movement of the drum is imparted to the shaft 61 throughthe medium of the lever I26. This aligns the notches 89 in the rail 68with the angles 84 and 65 so that the carriage is now free to move andthe operator may release the index plate I92 by raising the springplunger, whereupon the carriage may be moved to any desired setting byrotating the handle I45 to a higher or lower index point as indicated onthe visual indicator IOI.

When the desired setting is obtained the spring plunger I09 may bereleased and the tongue III is allowed to engage another notch I01.Having obtained the desired setting the drum 98 mustbe returned to itsnormal position before the keys can be operated.

A spring I46 surrounds the sleeve shaft 93 and bearing against the innerend of the hub 94 tends to return the drum to its normal position. Asthe drum returns to its normal position the shaft 51 returns to itsnormal position with the rail 68 engaging notches 66 in the angles 84and 65 and at the same time the cam H3 is disengaged from the pivot armII allowing the bar tal row in the records.

Assuming that the horizontal rows represent months in which it isdesired to record activities in, for example, the various departments ofa department store, by setting and locking the carriage for anyhorizontal row in the record the data for the month represented by saidrow may be very rapidly perforated into the records. However, it hasbeen found that occasionally the carriage must be moved to anotherhorizontal row in the record either above or below the one in which mostof the perforations are being placed. It was therefore necessary todevise some means for temporarily moving the carriage to anotherposition so that one or more punching operations could be effected andto have the carriage automatically return to its original setting afterthese out of the ordinary punching operations have been completed.

An arm I41 is provided with a hub I48 which is journalled on the sleeveshaft 93. The arm I41 is provided with a stud I49 to which is securedone end of a preferably fiat spring I50. The other end of the spring I50is secured to a stud I5I carried by the index plate I02.

The index plate I02 also carries a stud I52. The drum 98 has securedthereto, in the interior thereof, a stud I53. The studs I52 and I53clear each other radially and they are both parallel to the shaft 93.The arm I41 has a flat portion I54 which normally engages both the studsI52 and I53. A second arm I55 is provided with a This arm carries a studI51 to which one end of a flat spring I58 is secured. The other end ofthe spring I58 is secured to the stud I5I.

The arm I55 is provided with a straight portion I59 which engages thestuds I 52 and I53. The straight portion I59 contacts the studs I 52 andI53 on the right hand sides thereof as viewed in Figure 7, and the flatportion I54 contacts these studs on the left side as viewed in Figure'1. The spring I50 is so arranged that when the arm I41 is rotatedcounterclockwise, as viewed in Figure '1, the spring winds up; and whenthe arm I55 is moved clockwise, as viewed in Figure 7, its spring I58 iswound up. The arms I41 and I55 normally contact the studs I52 and I53under an initial'tension.

Now, with the carriage set to perforate in one horizontal row of therecords as above described for the purpose of entering activities duringany month, for example, and assuming that the carriage is set toperforate in the horizontal 5 row in the records, suppose it is foundnecessary to make one perforation in the 8 row, the handle I45 is movedto the right, as viewed in Figures 1 and 3, and thereby the drum 98moves to the right to a point where the registering pin I20 isdisengaged from the hole I2I and the key I23 is disengaged from the slotI22, The movement is continued until a point is reached where the drumcan be rotated. However, the registration pin I24 must not enter any ofthe holes I08 because in this instance the plunger I09, its tongue IIIand the index plate I02 are not disturbed. This movement of the drumthrough the medium of the ring I25 and the lever I26 moves the shaft 61to a point where notches 59 in the rail 68 permit the carriage to move(the slots 69 being of such width that the carriage is permitted to movewith the drum in the position just described).

By moving the handle I45 upwardly the drum may then be rotated until theindex line for the 8 row indicated on the flange IOI is in line with thepointer I I2. When this point is reached the lever is moved further tothe right sothat the registration pin I24 goes into a hole 605 corresponding to the 8 position after which a punching operation may beeifected in the horizontal 8 row in the record.

During the rotation of the drum just described, the stud I53 causes therotation of the arm I41 and thereby increases the tension on the springI50. As soon as the punching operation in the 8 row, just described, iscompleted the carriage must return to the 5 row where the main punchingoperations are being carried out. Therefore the handle I45 is releasedand the spring I48, acting endwise against the: interior of the drum,disengages the registration pin I24 from the hole I08 and as soon asthis occurs the spring I50 pulls the arm I41 back to its normal position(for example, from the dotted position shown in Figure '7 to theposition shown in solid lines) after which the spring I45 continues tomove the drum to the left (Figure 6) until the key I23 reengages thekeyway I22 and the pin I20 reengages the hole I2I, the carriage hasreturned to its original setting and punching operations may then beresumed.

Assuming that the carriage is set for punching operations in the 5 rowand it is desired to move the carriage to a row having a lower indexposition value, for example, the 2 row, the handle I45 would be moved tothe right, Figures 1, 3 and 6 as above described and when theregistering pin I20 is disengaged from the hole I 2! and the key isdisengaged from the keyway I22 the handle would then be moved downwardlythereby rotating the drum 98 in a clockwise direction as viewed inFigures 5 and '7 in which case the stud I53 working against the surfaceI59 would rotate the arm I55 in a clockwise direction thereby winding upthe spring I58.

As soon as the 2 on the visual indicator comes in line with the pointerII2 the handle is moved further to the right so that the registrationpin I26 will engage one of the holes I68 in the index plate I02. Thishole, of course, would be the one representing the horizontal 2 row inthe record. While the handle is held in this position punchingoperations may be effected in the 2 row after which the handle may bereleased and the carriage allowed to return to the original setting forcarrying on further punching operations in the row.

A shaft I68 is journalled in the end plates 2| and 22 and one end ofthis shaft extends through the end plate 2! and has secured thereto alever I6! which is provided with a handle I62. A cross pin I63 iscarried by the shaft I 6!) adjacent to the end plate 2|. A pin I64 issecured tothe interior of the end plate 22 and a spring I65 is securedto the pin I63 and to the pin I64. This spring tends to hold the shaftin its normal position with the pin I63 engaging a stop (not shown).

The mid portion of the shaft I66 is slotted and has secured thereto ametallic angle I66. This angle is of such length that it spans all ofthe levers 32. When the shaft I66 is rotated by means of the lever INand handle I62 through an arc the angle I66 engages the outer ends ofthe levers 32 and thereby if a punch 35 gets stuck in a die 38 it may bereleased by the operation of the lever I61.

As the punching operations go on the punchings pass through the dies 28and fall out via the depression 26.

A suitable back plate I6! is secured to the end plates 2i and 22 bymeans of screws I68 and thereby incloses the mechanism.

The drum 98 is provided with spring loaded clips I69 and I I9 so that apaper strip "I may be clipped to the drum. This strip lII may carrylegends or other representations of departments which carry seasonalgoods, or it may carry any other designations desired.

Strips, one of which is shown at I'I2, are provided adjacent to the keys43 and carry numerals indicating the columnar positions of the punches.For example, the lower right hand punch as viewed in Figure 1 isindicated as adapted to perforate in the 76th column of the record.These designations may be used, in some cases. In other cases it hasbeen found expedient to attach to the keys removable buttons designatingthe name of the department or any other designation desired. One ofthese removable buttons is indicated by the numeral I13 designating thehat department.

Although a single embodiment of the invention is shown and describedherein it is obvious that many changes may be made in the device withoutdeparting from the spirit of the invention as set forth in the followingclaims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a key punch, a frame, a die located on one portion of said frame,a punch in cooperative relation to said die, a lever pivotally supportedon said frame and operatively associated with said punch, a key spacedapart from said die and supported on another portion of said frame,means between said key and said lever for transmitting motion from theformer to the latter, a rigid conduit enclosing said means and defininga path for said motion, spring means acting against said lever forwithdrawing the punch from the die and returning the lever and the keyto their respective normal positions, and a manually operable memberadapted to engage said lever to withdraw said punch from the die in caseof failure of said spring means.

2. In a punching machine, a plurality of dies, a punch for each of saiddies, means for selectively propelling said punches into and out of saiddies, a record carriage adapted to support a record in operativerelation to said punches and dies, means for setting and locking saidcarriage in any desired position relative to the punches whereby aseries of punching operations may be effected, means including amanually operable lever for temporarily moving said carriage wherebypunching operations may be effected in another portion of the record,and mechanism and spring means associated with said lever for returningthe carriage to said first setting when said lever is released.

3. A device as claimed in claim 2 in which an indicator is associatedwith the manually operable lever for visually indicating the index valueof the setting.

4. In a punching machine, a frame, a plurality of dies supported on saidframe, a punch for each of said dies, a plurality of keys carried bysaid frame and spaced apart from said punches, means for transmittingmotion from each individual key to an associated punch, a recordcarriage movably carried on said frame and adapted to support a recordin operative relation to said punches and dies, means for setting andlocking said carriage in any desired position relative to the punches,said means including a rotatable shaft geared to said carriage and amanually operable lever for moving said shaft, and means also operableby said lever for moving said carriage on said frame without disturbingsaid means for setting and locking the carriage.

5. In a punching machine, a frame, a plurality of dies supported inalinement on said frame, a stripper block parallel to and spaced apartfrom said dies, a plurality of punches slidably supported in saidstripper block and adapted to cooperate with said dies, a leveroperatively connected to each of said punches, a plurality of keyscarried by said frame and spaced apart from said levers, operativelinkage between said punches and said levers for transmitting motionfrom each individual key to its associated lever and punch, a recordcarriage movably carried on said frame, means for setting and lookingsaid carriage in any one of aplur-ality of positions on said frame,means interposed between said carriage and said setting and lockingmeans for temporarily moving the carriage away from a locked positionwhile keeping the main carriage holding means in locked position, andspring means for returning said carriage to its locked position when theinterposed means is released.

6. A device as claimed in claim 5 in which the carriage is provided withangular strips having notches formed therein and a shaft slidablymounted in said frame is provided with portions adapted to engage saidnotches for retaining the carriage in any desired setting relative tothe dies, and in which the punching mechanism is disabled during thecarriage movement, and enabled when one of said portions engages anotch.

'7. In a punching machine having a frame, a plurality of punches anddies, and selective means for propelling said punches into and out ofsaid dies; a record carriage movably supported on said frame, a pair ofracks secured to said carriage, a rotatable shaft supported in saidframe, a plurality of gears on said shaft meshing with said racks, anindex plate pivotally carried on said shaft, said plate havingregistration notches formed therein corresponding to index positions inthe record relative to said punches, an actuating member secured to saidshaft and adapted to engage said index plate, means carried on saidframe for engaging any of said notches in the index plate, and meansinterposed between said plate and said member for temporarily moving thecarriage to other index positions than the one indexed by said plate,said last means including spring means for returning said carriage tothe position indexed by the plate when the means for temporarily movingthe carriage is released.

8. In a punching machine having a frame, a plurality of punches anddies, and selective means for propelling said punches into and out ofsaid dies; a record carriage movably supported on said frame, a pair ofracks secured to said carriage, a rotatable shaft supported in saidframe, a plurality of gears on said shaft meshing with said racks, anindex plate pivotally carried on said shaft, said plate havingregistration notches formed therein corresponding to index positions inthe record relative to said punches, a drum secured to said shaft, aflange formed integral with said drum carrying graduations correspondingto index positions in the records and having a keyway formed therein andspaced apart from said graduations, a key carried by said index plateand adapted to engage said keyway when the drum is in a normal position,locking means carried on said frame and engaging one of the notches ofthe index plate, and a lever operatively connected to said drum andadapted to move the same longitudinally along said shaft to disengagesaid key from said keyway after which the drum may be rotated to movethe carriage.

9. A device as claimed in claim 8 in which the drum is provided with twosprings acting in opposite directions and so arranged that when the drumis rotated in either direction the tension of at least one of thesprings is increased thereby causing the shaft to rotate in an oppositedirection and to return the carriage to its original position on theframe when the lever is released.

10. A device as claimed in claim 8 in which the carriage carries aserrated strip and in which the frame carries a slidable member adaptedto engage one of said serrations for locking the carriage in any desiredregistration, said member engaging and disengaging said serrations inaccordance with the longitudinal movement of said drum.

11. A device as claimed in claim 8 in which the shaft is also providedwith a cam, and a member carried on said frame is engaged by said camduring the movement of the carriage and engages said propelling meansthereby preventing the punches from operating during the movement of thecarriage.

12. In a machine for punching cards in which perforations along onedimension represent different classes of information and perforationsalong another dimension represent data in the respective classes, asingle row of key operated punches disposed parallel tothe perforationsalong said first dimension, a. frame supporting said punches and thekeys associated therewith, a card carriage on said frame, means foradjusting said carriage parallel to said second dimension and lockingthe same in position for perforating in a single line along said firstdimension, and means including a manually operable lever and aselfcentering return mechanism for moving said carriage from its lockedposition for perforating data of other values or classes, said returnmechanism being adapted to return the carriage to said first lockedposition.

13. In a key punch including punches, keys, a frame and a carriagemovable on said frame, indexing means for setting said carriage adefinite relation to said punches whereby data of any given index valuemay be recorded, means for disassociating said carriage from the setindexing means and moving the same to a setting of an index valuedifferent from said first value, and means associated with said secondmeans, and operable when said second means is released, for returningsaid carriage to its original setting, regardless of whether the indexvalue of said second setting is greater or less than said first setting.

14. In a punch' for perforating records, a frame, a multiple die andpunches therefor supported on said frame, means for selectivelyactuating said punches, a record carriage movably mounted on said frame,a rotatable shaft carrying mechanism engaging said carriage, an indexplate pivoted on said shaft, a member on said frame adapted to engagesaid plate, a hollow drum keyed to said shaft and longitudinally movablethereon, a stud secured to the index plate and extending into the hollowof said drum, a stud in said drum parallel to and spaced apart from saidfirst stud, both of said studs being parallel to said shaft and normallyin line radially within said drum, an arm pivoted on said shaft andnormally contacting one side of both of said studs, a second arm pivotedon said shaft and normally contacting the opposite side of both of saidstuds, spring means associated with one of said arms adapted to be woundup when the same is moved in one direction, spring means associated withthe other of said arms adapted to be wound up when the same is moved ina direction opposite to said first direction, and rotatable means torotate the drum in either direction thereby causing said second stud torotate one of said arms and wind up the spring means associatedtherewith; said spring means being adapted, through the medium of one ofsaid arms and one of said studs, to rotate said shaft and bring saidcarriage to a normal position defined by the initial setting of theindex plate.

15. A punching machine according to claim 14 in which the spring meansassociated with said arms comprises flat spiral springs each having oneend connected to an arm and the other ends connected to a second studcarried by the index plate.

16. A punching machine according to claim 14 in which the means. forselectively actuating the punches include-s, manually operable keyscarried on said frame and spaced apart from the punches, and individualmeans for transmitting motion from each key to a corresponding punch isprovided and confined within a rigid conduit defining a path for saidmotion.

17. A punching machine according to claim 14 in which the drum isprovided with a graduated flange carrying an indexing pin, an indexinghole, and an indexing keyway; in which said index plate is provided withan extension overhanging said flange and carrying a registration pinwhich normally engages said indexing hole, and a key which normallyengages said indexing keyway; in

which a spring embracing said shaft within the hollow of the drum holdsthe drum in a normal position, and in which a lever is associated withthe drum for moving it longitudinally against said last spring todisengage said pin and said key from the flange and for rotating thedrum to move the carriage after such disengagement.

18. A punching machine according to claim 14 in which the drum isprovided with clips by means of which a strip bearing designations maybe applied to the drum.

19. In a punching device for perforating records, a die, a plurality ofpunches. for said die, means for moving said punches into and out ofsaid dies, a frame supporting said punches and. said dies, a carriagefor said records movably supported on said frame, means for setting and,locking said carriage on said frame, balanced resilient means betweensaid carriage and said frame, and means for temporarilymovingsaidcarriage from a set and locked position and unbalancing saidresilient means during each temporary movement.

20. In a punching device for perforating records, a die, a plurality ofpunches for said die, means for moving said punches into and out of saiddies, a frame supporting said punches and said dies, a carriage for saidrecords movably supported on said frame, mechanism for moving saidcarriage on said frame, a locking member, a pawl on said frame adaptedto engage said member for locking said carriage on the frame in anydesired setting, and balanced spring means interposed between saidmember and said mechanism thereby permitting said mechanism to beoperated to move said carriage in either direction from a lockedposition on said frame and at the same time unbalancing said springmeans.

21. A punching device according to claim 20 in which said mechanismincludes a manually operable lever which when released returns to anormal position while the carriage returns to its original setting underthe urge of said spring means while balancing itself.

LINCOLN M. KEEFE.

